Friday, August 1, 2008

CHASING AWAY THE VULTURES

In Genesis 15, God made a glorious agreement with Abraham. He instructed the patriarch to take a female heifer and a female goat and cut them in two. Then Abraham was to take a turtledove and a pigeon and lay them on the ground, head to head. Abraham did as he was instructed, and as these creatures lay bleeding, vultures began to descend on the carcasses. Suddenly, Abraham felt a terrible darkness surrounding him. What was this darkness? It was Satan in a panic.

How do you think Satan reacts when he sees all the promises of God becoming yours, as you give your life to Jesus? The devil goes into a jealous rage. Then when he sees your firm resolve to go all the way with the Lord, there is only one way for him to react: all of hell goes into a panic!

What did Abraham do when the vultures came? Scripture says he chased them away. Likewise, the Lord has shown us a way to deal with menacing vultures. We don’t have to be afraid of the devil’s attacks, because we have been given mighty weapons of warfare.

Whenever any voice of doubt or questioning of God comes into my mind, I have to line it up against what I know about my loving Lord. I can’t accept any thoughts as true if they are based on simply what I am feeling in the moment. They have to be measured against Jesus’ promises to me about himself and about the victory he has won for me.

Simply put, if thoughts come to me that are accusing—if they cause doubt and fear, or are condemning, or bring a sense of rejection—I know they are not of God. We all have to be prepared for such horrible thoughts to come. Even the Lord Jesus was subject to these kinds of thoughts from the enemy during his wilderness temptation.

When vultures come at you, bringing thoughts of unworthiness and insecurity, chase them away with God’s Word. The sacrifice that the Lord has led you to make is pleasing to him, and he will honor it.